Temperature in brooder

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funnyfarmmama

funnyfarmmama

In the Brooder
10 Years
Jul 15, 2009
28
0
22
Being new to raising chickens, I have a couple of questions reagarding the temperature inside my brooder. I have a brooder that my husband made from plywood, and it has an open top.

I have read that you should change to a smaller lightbulb at night to teach the chicks when to sleep. When I do this my temperature drops from approximately 90 degrees down to between 75 and 80 degrees is this ok? The chicks huddle together and sleep, but I worry they are getting cold. I think if I left the larger lightbulb on all night for the heat they would get too hot and "pick" at each other. Should I continue to change lights?
 
Hi, there! I just joined the site, but have raised many "batches" of chicks in the past 4 years.

I have tried many combinations of light/heat sources. The one that's worked the best so far is to have a light on (single 60-watt bulb) continuously for the first 2-3 weeks, adjusting the level up or down and the cover over the top based on how comfy the chicks look. They will really sleep when they need to and I haven't seen evidence of pecking.

After those first crucial weeks, and since it's summer now, I covered them up in a warmer room at night, then uncovered them during the day. They did great! All are alive and kicking and started living outside at just 4 weeks earlier this month.

Good luck!
 
My first question is how old are your chicks?
For the first week they need the temp to be around 90 degrees. For each week after that, you can drop the temp down 5 degrees. By the time they are fully feathered, or around 5 weeks old, they should be able to hold their own body temp with out the aid of a heat lamp. If your chicks are cold, they will peep and let you know. They are huddling to keep warm, but if they are quiet, then they should be comfortable.
I personally don't use a white or regular light bulb in my brooder. I use a 125 watt plant bulb ( it's used for indoor plants that may not get enough sun.) It gives off a soft blue light that is supossed to be more natural than white light bulbs. I did use a white bulb for the first few days because my chicks arrived early, and I couldn't get to the store right away. They did peck until I changed the bulb out. They need the light bulb more for heat than for light, so I don't think you need to worry about changing it out each night. You're just making more work for yourself. The only other thing that I want to add is that a red (or in my case, blue) light bulb will reduce the urge to peck. This I know from experience.
 
Light doesn't matter much for the first weeks as they will sleep eat and poop often day and night. When mine are close to a month old I use a smaller light. In my hen's house I have a red 11 watt sign light bulb that I leave on all of the time. My chicks are 3 weeks old. I will be changing the 40 watt in their coop to a 15 watt. I think the light helps to get them back into the coop in the evenings as the light can be seen in the pop door.
 
They don't actually need any light at night after they are a few days old. They may still nead heat after that, depending on the environment, and a light is then used for warmth only. Many on here use regular white light for this; many others use red or another color. If there is picking with a white light, changing to red will often help this.

When you put them in the coop, a small light in the coop to help teach them to go into the coop for the night is often helpful. This can be turned off when you go out to shut the coop door. Once they learn to go in the coop at night on their own, they will rest better if there is no light in the coop.

With temps in the brooder, a little cool is much better than a little warm.
 

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